Little Lucky Star
When Song Tiaotiao saw Village Chief Li's expression, he felt more confident.
She looked at Village Chief Li, who was perusing the text, and chuckled softly, "Grandpa Village Chief, I'm still young and inexperienced in this matter, so I dare not be overly arrogant. However, everything depends on human effort. Everything I've written down is based on my experience gained from reading the works of agricultural experts during my time in Beijing. If we implement it properly and manage it with care, I believe we can improve the current situation at a noticeable rate."
Hearing this, Village Chief Li raised his bright, insightful eyes from the text, looked at Song Tiaotiao, shook his head, and sighed, "Song girl, don't be so overly modest. I've been farming since childhood, and I see that what you've written is not just rote memorization, but a reflection of your practical application. You've been able to apply so many farming principles so effectively, and to pinpoint the root causes of Muye Village's problems, you must have accumulated a lot of experience. I underestimated you, old man."
At this point, he gazed at the plan, nodded deeply, and laughed heartily. "Besides, your solution is very detailed. I'll go... no, I'll go gather the farmers from both villages now and discuss how to implement it." He then hurried into the house. "Brother Zhang, don't be so gloomy anymore. Your savior is here!"
Upon hearing this, Village Chief Zhang hurried out of the door, his dark eyes looking around quickly, as if he was afraid that if he was a second slower, the person given by God would disappear without a trace.
Burning with anxiety, he looked at Village Chief Li in confusion as he had not found the savior he longed for for a long time.
Seeing him walking towards him with a smile, as if to lead him to Song Tiaotiao beside him, Village Chief Zhang raised his thick eyebrows and looked puzzled.
What was Old Li trying to do? This little kid was so young, and his appearance was so fresh and radiant, like he had just been hydrated. What did this have to do with farming?
Although Village Chief Zhang was suspicious, under the repeated urging of Village Chief Li, he finally took the stack of papers and looked at it with a desperate attitude.
Village chief Zhang has been living with cattle and sheep in the mountains since he was a child. He is not as knowledgeable as Village chief Li and can only recognize a few big characters.
Now, he was holding a thick stack of manuscripts and had no patience to read them.
However, the more he read, the stronger the premonition in his heart became.
The knot in his heart that has been bothering him for years seems to be finally revealed today.
In his excitement, even when he encountered words or sentences he didn't understand, he could not help but be patient and ask Village Chief Li word by word to clarify his doubts.
In this way, I half listened to the explanation and half understood it on my own.
In the end, the iron-blooded old man's nose was sore, and he clutched the paper tightly, regretting repeatedly: "So that's why I didn't persist in the first place...!"
It turned out that when the soil quality in Muye Village deteriorated earlier, the few old farmers reported the changes in the land to Village Chief Zhang.
But the soil of Makino Village was originally so poor that it could not even feed thousands of livestock.
At that time, every household was busy raising livestock as their main business, and the land, which was originally regarded as a chicken rib, became even more useless, as if it was no big deal.
Although Village Chief Zhang wanted to take care of the matter, the villagers were not interested and their opinions were divided. After a while, the matter was left unresolved.
In the end, when everyone began to realize that the soil quality of Makino Village was completely different from that of the surrounding villages, the rescue plan was already too late.
On the plains, plants were difficult to grow at first, and then the fruits and vegetables we usually eat had to be brought in from surrounding villages.
Gradually, the grass consumed daily by their cattle and sheep, which they were so proud of, became increasingly scarce.
They exiled their cattle and sheep, moving further and further away from home. But no matter how vast Makino Village was, such escapism would eventually leave them with nowhere to go.
This incident became a knot in the heart of Village Chief Zhang.
With deep regret, he made up his mind and led the village farmers to conduct in-depth research. However, the symptoms were as stubborn as moss, clinging to the land on which they depended for their survival.
If his own village didn't work, he would look for another village. If that didn't work, he would go further away.
One day, they heard a good method of land management from a farmer in Suzhou in the Northern Dynasty.
However, due to the lack of money, I only gave them a rough outline of the content, saying that it was nothing more than drainage and soil replacement, and the rest was up to them to figure out on their own.
Suzhou's fertile soil was fundamentally different from their already diseased land. Unwilling to force a new approach, they instead leveraged its strengths and examined their own weaknesses. After a long period of effort, they finally combined their previous methods and managed to come up with a suitable, phased plan.
They couldn't wait to put the land into use in batches, but as time went on, seeing that the land had not changed at all, their ambitions quickly faded. As with any other time before, they cooled down and looked for other solutions.
Village Chief Li recalled those days and sighed softly, "Back then, we were like scholars groping for knowledge on our own. With only the occasional word of advice from a teacher, we'd want to rely on our own strength to achieve fame and fortune. The first time, the second time, the third and fourth times, we saw no results for a long time. Even if there was a chance that it might come true, we would lose hope and lose faith in ourselves, so we would persevere to the end. In the end, we would fail halfway, and all our previous efforts would be wasted..."
Hearing this, Song Tiaotiao lowered her eyes and nodded slightly.
Whether in modern times or in the Southern Dynasties, she had taught herself a lot of knowledge.
Therefore, she understood very well the feeling of powerlessness when one suffers from the lack of theoretical guidance, constantly investing energy to deepen knowledge, but seeing no results, and fearing that all efforts are in vain or going against the purpose.
Village Chief Zhang looked up at the azure sky and took a deep breath. "God has blessed you with a little fortune. After your explanation today, I finally understand why we need to drain the water, and why we failed before."
As soon as he finished speaking, the self-pity in his eyes was unconsciously replaced by a look of joy.
After all, he is a man of temperament, and his emotions come and go quickly.
Now the blockage in his heart that had been there for many years had finally been unblocked. He was finally focusing on reality and no longer troubled by the past.
With the support of Village Chief Li, Village Chief Zhang, holding the paper in his hands, was already beaming with joy, as if he had passed the imperial examination: "Now, your method is the most well-founded and has the greatest chance of curing the problem that I have ever seen. Regardless of success or failure this time, I have the confidence to fight you again. Little kid, have you seen the livestock over there? This is the most valuable treasure of our Muye Village, and now, they all belong to you!" After speaking, Village Chief Zhang laughed heartily and led Song Tiaotiao to the side of the fat livestock.
Song Tiaotiao looked at the circle of sturdy livestock, her eyes flickering. After a moment, she shook her head gently: "As a junior, I am very satisfied to have the trust of the two village chiefs. But now, the method has not been implemented yet, how can I..."
Before she could finish her words, Village Chief Zhang waved his hands repeatedly, silencing her. "Little girl, I believe in you. I've tried countless methods on this land over the years, and I have my own opinion on how likely your method will be to succeed. Regardless of the final outcome, having a farming advisor like you, even if I give you a little more, what's the harm? Besides, I raise these livestock myself. I'm happy to give them to talented people. Who can say you can't do it?"
Village Chief Li twirled his beard lightly, smiled softly, and nodded, "Don't worry, Miss Song, about the gossip of the villagers. You can solve your worries for us, and we will take care of it for you, so that you don't have to worry about it."
Village Chief Zhang laughed heartily and nodded deeply. "That's right. I can't let my little military advisor suffer for his advice. If they say anything against you, I will definitely not forgive them. Alright, Song girl, you can put your mind at ease this time. These animals are at your disposal."
When Song Tiaotiao heard this, she thought of how the villagers of Songbai Village looked forward to their livestock yesterday. They left behind a few of the stronger ones on the grounds that they had not yet built pens at home, saying that they were to be shared among the villagers for the purpose of asking for luck and food during festivals.
Seeing this, Village Chief Zhang raised his thick eyebrows, and he also understood some of the ways of the world from Song Tiaotiao's words and expression.
He looked at the livestock that Song Tiaotiao had left behind and sighed with a smile, "As expected of you, young military advisor, you've thought of everything so carefully. Don't worry about any inequality. Our village and Songbai Village have been connected for generations, so we're quite related. We can't come here empty-handed, so we have to take care of everything. But you're also kind-hearted, and this way, they'll all remember your kindness. By the way, I heard from Brother Li that you run a food store. You'll naturally benefit from this in the future."
This time, Song Tiaotiao did not refuse and responded with a smile.
Village Chief Zhang nodded in approval. Then, he casually glanced at the neatly dressed Village Chief Li and slapped his forehead, saying, "It's already late. I can't delay any longer. Song girl, please forgive me for not talking to you for now. Look at how packed I am. I have to hurry back to my room to pack up and find someone to discuss how to proceed with this." With that, he handed the paper to Village Chief Li for safekeeping like it was a treasure and hurried back to his room.
Seeing this, Village Chief Li shook his head and chuckled, "Decades have passed, and Brother Zhang is still the same." At this point, he turned his gaze and fixed his eyes on the livestock. "Song girl, as for these livestock, I will find someone to help you build a livestock pen near your home. Once it's built, I will lead them there. For the time being, I will keep them here and take good care of them."
Hearing this, Song Tiaotiao smiled and nodded repeatedly to express her gratitude.
After a moment, she looked at the healthy livestock in the pen, her eyes shifted, and she said, "These livestock are very strong and healthy under the care of the two village chiefs. I hope I can take care of them as well in the future."
Village Chief Li chuckled. "Song girl, you've managed to turn the food shop you inherited from the Jin family into such a thriving business. You must have put in the effort to study everything, and you've definitely done a good job. And if you have any questions about this, feel free to ask me, an old man. Brother Zhang and I have been friends since childhood, and I've learned a bit from him. Raising livestock is all about cleaning, feeding, and watering them."
Hearing this, Song Tiaotiao frowned slightly. "Grandpa Village Head, speaking of drinking water, that's exactly what I'm worried about. It's been more than ten days since the last rain in our village, and I can see that the seedlings in my vegetable garden are starting to thirst for water. I'm wondering how I'm going to solve the drinking water problem for the livestock in the future."
Village Chief Li's eyes flickered. He looked up at the sun and sighed softly, "Now, this is indeed a problem that we have to face. Once I hear from the adults, I will tell everyone how to deal with the water shortage."
Hearing this, Song Tiaotiao's eyes moved slightly and she nodded.
After saying goodbye to the two village chiefs, Song Tiaotiao returned to the food store as agreed, waiting to meet Gu Chengjue later.
Nowadays, the food shop has just passed breakfast time and there are fewer people around.
Seeing Song Tiaotiao, Jin Zhenjiao behind the counter stood up with joy and ran towards her, smiling sweetly, "Tiaotiao, you finally came to see me. Although it's only been a day, it really feels like a long time has passed." At this point, she opened the account book, "Tiaotiao, look, I've been working hard to run our shop. Yesterday, as the new cook, I made quite a bit of money."
Seeing Jin Zhenjiao's achievements, Song Tiaotiao said happily, "As expected of our Sister Zhenjiao, she makes a fortune every day. I'm sure she has captured the hearts of many gluttons."
Hearing this, Jin Zhenjiao recalled Zhao Huaian's surprised look when he tasted her dishes. She chuckled softly and waved her hand, saying, "Isn't it all thanks to Master Tiao Tiao's good teaching?" At this point, she whispered, "By the way, how are the two of you progressing? I heard that the Jin family seems unwilling to help with this drought..."
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